Wednesday, February 11, 2015

Texas National Guard is staying on the border for now...

National Guard troops sent to the Texas-Mexico border
last summer are now in line to stay indefinitely and not come home in
March as originally planned, Republican Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said
Tuesday.
The shift comes only four weeks after Rick Perry, who ordered 1,000
armed Guard troops to the Rio Grande Valley in one of his last major
acts as Texas governor, was replaced by a successor who has promised an
even tougher line on border security.
Gov. Greg Abbott did not attend the announcement and no plans have
been formalized. But an extended Guard deployment is the latest signal
that Texas’ new conservative leadership is planning record state
spending on border security, even while acknowledging that illegal
crossings have slowed dramatically.[…]
Patrick’s budget in the Texas Senate calls for spending $815 million
on border security — which he says is more than the last seven years
combined.
The Texas Military Department estimates that a Guard force “of
400-500 best saves resources,” according to a memo from Patrick’s
office.